After utilising public outreach game-changers like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, the Narendra Modi government, as part of its 360 degree communication strategy, is all set to harness the power of community radio to reach out to citizens.

A step towards this was taken on Monday when the Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Arun Jaitley inaugurated a three-day National Community Radio Sammelan in the presence of Minister of State Rajyavardhan Rathore.

This is the first time the government intends to use community radio in a big way to give a push to flagship schemes like Swachh Bharat and Jan Dhan Yojana. Mr. Jaitley’s address focused on making people feel that the medium belonged to them.

“Community radio, as a medium of communication, constitutes an integral component of the right to free speech and expression. It forms part of the airwaves, the monopoly of which did not lie with state but with the people or the community,” he said.

In a statement, Mr. Jaitley sought to dispel the ‘myth’ about government control of airwaves. “Airwaves constitute public property, the myth of state monopoly (is shattered),” he said.

The three-day conference will bring together community radio operators, policy-makers, international bodies like UNICEF and UNESCO, and other stakeholders for exchange of ideas on issues like the role of community radio in good governance, sustainability, content sharing and on development-oriented programming.

Source: TH